One of the, hopefully crucial, differences between the situation in Northern Ireland now and in the late 60s when the former Troubles brewed up is that the 'institutionalised' (for once the word is valid) discrimination on the basis of religion that used to exist in the Province has more or less evaporated.

I'm surprised how 'institutionalised' I became while on the course; it was great having multiple deadlines and vigorous criticial appraisal to keep the adrenaline levels up, but it made it easy to just focus on the course as an objective in itself, rather than a tool for the bigger work.

The right hitherto enjoyed by the public to draw cheques at their option in this way is recognised in the proposed legislation and the call by the banking industry to provide for an "institutionalised" non-transferable cheque only is rejected.

Let’s move to a more recent example of what I can only call institutionalised racism in American reporting of Iraq I have to thank reader Andrew Gorman for this gem, a January Associated Press report about the killing of an Iraqi prisoner under interrogation by US Chief Warrant Officer Lewis Welshofer Jnr.